Media centre

This section of our site is designed for journalists, broadcasters and other members of the media. You can find our latest press releases, contact details for our media team, key facts about IIED and information about our spokespeople.

Our press officer is the first point of contact for journalists seeking information about IIED. You can also use our media contact form for news enquiries.

Latest press releases

A lack of urgency at COP22 means that the poorest countries in the world must wait a further two years before key decisions are made on how to put the Paris Agreement into action, says IIED director Andrew Norton

Nearly 200 million people living in cities across the world lack access to electricity. Greater commitment to financing energy and other basic services is needed to help tackle urban poverty and make cities engines of economic growth, new research reveals ahead of the UN's Habitat III meeting in Quito, Ecuador, from 17-20 October

The European Union's ratification of the Paris Agreement is a "huge step forward", says IIED director Andrew Norton, but the poorest countries, who are most affected by climate change, must be included in key discussions

A group of national government, business and community leaders have embarked on a programme of sector reform that will turn the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector into a responsible, inclusive, rights-based engine for sustainable development in Ghana

Media mentions

How Food Change Labs in Chongwe are support local Zambian people in their needs facing food security and food diversity. The food lab approach brings together many voices involved in influencing food policies and re-shaping the food system.

“Health and health care get mentioned a lot in the text of the draft New Urban Agenda, but usually in a long list of things,” said IIED senior fellow David Satterthwaite. The Habitat III strategy is being adopted as global recognition is picking up that health should be at the heart of city development strategies.

As the climate agreement is ratified, developing nations warn that money pledged is still nowhere near enough to adapt to expected sea level rises. IIED director Andrtew Norton is quoted on how developed countries must prioritise investing international climate finance in the least developed countries

Experts

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The Paris Agreement cannot be a success unless every country commits to take part. A global goal of climate neutrality and resilience at least by the mid-century requires a considerable transition in every country.
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Policymakers are increasingly recognising that off-grid solutions offer the potential to rapidly increase access to energy in poor communities. But what is less clear is how to make the finance work.
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Reaching the 1.3 billion who don't have access to electricity requires millions of smaller initiatives in rural areas — and that doesn’t even account for broader energy services, such as clean cooking and productive energy for agriculture and small business.
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The future of African drylands, and their people, lies in securing pastoralism for those who wish to remain pastoralists, and providing alternative, but complementary, livelihood options for those who do not (or cannot).
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The message from the most vulnerable communities is that any agreement that fails to address the concerns of those most affected will not be acceptable to the many millions of poor and vulnerable people in all countries.
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Wildlife crime has impacts at different levels. It can deplete natural assets that are important for national development – for example wildlife that attracts tourists. It can also deplete resources that poor people depend on to survive.
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Chinese journalists rarely report from Africa. As a result, the Chinese public knows little about the continent – and even less about the environmental and development challenges associated with Chinese investment and consumption decisions.
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